117. Beginner Bible Course: The burial of Jesus

EPISODE 117 –  A simple Bible overview of...THE BURIAL OF JESUS (WHAT HAPPENED BETWEEN GOOD FRIDAY AFTERNOON AND EASTER MORNING)

We need to look at what happened between Friday afternoon and early Sunday morning, before we can go there, we should talk about something that really bugs. A lot of people. Jesus, several times had talked about the sign of Jonah. That is Jonah was in the belly of a great fish for three days and three nights, even. So the son of man would be in the belly of the earth. And that's where the issue comes from. How could Jesus be in the grave three days and three nights if he was crucified on Friday afternoon because of this, some people move the crucifixion back to Thursday or even Wednesday. I've heard myself ask that question. When I rent tools or park at an airport, when I bring the tool back or drive out and I get charged, I'm often surprised by what I all you see to them a day is any part of a day.

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If I park my car for two days in one minute, I get to pay for three days. And that's how Jewish people reckon time. Any portion of a day was an entire day back in the book of first Samuel chapter 30 David and his men are out looking for their stuff and their families who've been taken captive. They come across a straggler. He was part of the marauding bands that took their stuff, but he's been left behind because he's sick. He explains to David, he hasn't eaten or drank anything for three days and three nights, a few verses later, he tells them that three days earlier, he got sick and was flat out abandoned. It was three days previous, but he says he has neatened for three days and three nights.

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Jesus himself. When speaking of his death or resurrection repeats, the son of man will be raised on the third day. That's Jesus normal statement. I'll be raised on the third day. So Jesus died on Friday afternoon. That would be considered to them a day in the night. Then we have Saturday the day and the night, which in Jewish reckoning would be another day and night kind of like the rental place. The reason Friday makes sense is several times in the text we're told the next day was the Sabbath. Sabbath was Saturday. Some people make a case since Passover was a week long celebration. There may have been special Sabbaths so if you'd like to move it back to good Thursday or even good Wednesday, I don't really think God would be too concerned.

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The point is his son, the Messiah is dead and he promises he'll be raised back to life. So let's talk about dead. Was he really dead? In a future episode, we're going to look at alternative theories of Jesus' resurrection. One of those claims, Jesus, wasn't really dead. We'll examine their theory, but I want to look at their conclusion. They claim Jesus was not dead. Five people or parties on the ground at the time would disagree. The first was the executioner a century and was in charge of those soldiers. At the cross, they were professional executioners. They confirmed Jesus was dead.

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They had been trained where to put that spear through a victim's heart. They didn't break his legs. They were convinced he was dead. The second is pilot. He was convinced Jesus was dead. One gospel writer tells us he was surprised Jesus was dead so quickly. So he confirmed that with his Centurion, the third group who were convinced he was dead, where the religious leaders who killed him, we'll see, in this episode, they come to pilot saying when that imposter was alive, but he isn't anymore. The fourth is a subset of those religious leaders, two righteous men who opposed his killing. We'll also meet them today.

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Joseph Avera Matthia and Nicodemus. They're the ones who embalmed Jesus. They spent at least an hour working with the body, mummifying it, and they're convinced he's dead. And then there are two marries. They won't leave Jesus' body at the cross and they follow Joseph Rivera, mafia and Nicodemus to the tomb and watch the embalming. These two marries adore Jesus. And there's no way they're going to let those two men embalmed their precious Jesus. If they're not convinced he's dead, Jesus was dead. Now let's take a look at what Matthew Mark, Luke and John tell us happened as Jesus hung their dead on the cross.

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Matthew says Joseph, a man from Aaron Matthia wants to have the privilege of burying Jesus. Luke adds he was a member of the council and Mark adds a prominent member. That council was the religious council that condemned Jesus to death. Joseph of Aaron Matthia goes to pilot and asked for the body. It's here. Mark reports, pilot surprised he's already dead. He summons the century and in charge for a confirmation of that death. And when he hears he's stone, dead pilot releases the body to Joseph of Matthia. Joseph goes to the tomb with linens to wrap him in.

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John tells us it's there. He's joined by a comrade from the council Nicodemus that one who came to Jesus at night in John chapter three, Matthew calls Joseph a secret disciple of Jesus. That's likely true of Nicodemus as well. This was no small thing to break from the council. And now given honorable even King, like burial to Jesus Nicodemus comes with 75 pounds of myrrh and aloes. Those were spices intended to glue the linen wrappings together and cocoon the corpse enough to mitigate the stench together. These men wrap Jesus like a mummy layering, the gooey spices between raps.

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It was wrapping the limbs individually. Then together, then wrapping them tight against the body. Again, the Marys are witnessing this watching perhaps even helping when Jesus' body was fully wrapped. Matthew tells us he was laid in a new tomb hewn out of the rock. Luke tells us it was a new tomb. It had never been used before. And there was a large round stone, maybe three or four feet in diameter. It's leaning up against the cave propped with a wedge. When Jesus was set in place, the men removed the wedge and the large stone rolls down in front of the opening.

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Joseph Avera Matthia Nicodemus. Then leave. Luke tells us the two marries, also leave and go home to prepare more spices. The next day, the chief priests and Pharisees come to pilot. They have another request when he was alive. This imposter taught that after three days, he would rise from the dead. We want a guard to secure the tomb. Otherwise if his disciples come and steal the body and start saying, he's raised from the dead, we're going to have a bigger problem than we had before we kill them. Pilot replies, you have a guard, go make it secure. We're not sure if that meant you have your own guards, temple guards, or you can have my guard either way.

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These weren't cream puffs, the temple guards had to handle hundreds of thousands of zealous Jews in the temple courtyard. And as for Roman guards, they were killing machines, trained to work as a unit, the guards go to the tomb and they seal the stone. If it was a Roman guard, that seal was the seal of Caesar. It was likely wax on either side with a cord pressed into the wax and the Cigna or seal of Caesar in the wax. You couldn't break that seal without somebody knowing it. And if you broke that seal, you unsealed all the power of Rome against you. It would be a really, really bad idea.

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That's all the gospel writers. Tell us about what happened between Friday afternoon when Jesus breathed his last and early Sunday morning, that's not enough for many people. They want to know where was Jesus during this time? The apostles creed, which many Christians recite answer it this way. He descended into hell nowhere in scripture. Does it say Jesus descended into hell. Some translations translate the old Testament term she'll or the new Testament term Haiti's as hell she'll or Haiti's was the biblical term for the place of the spirits of dead people.

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You can do some research on this, but it's basically this it's a waiting room, actually two waiting rooms, one waiting room for the souls of the righteous and another waiting room for the souls of the wicked. We get the most information about Sheol or Hades from a parable. Jesus told in Luke six, it's the parable of the rich man and Lazarus in his parable. A rich wicked man lived luxuriously. And there was a poor man named Lazarus. The rich wicked man treated Lazarus miserably. Both men died the rich man and went to the wicked waiting room.

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Haiti. He's the soul of Lazarus, the poor, but righteous man went to the righteous waiting room. He said to be there in Abraham's bosom or arms in Jesus' parable in this one, wicked waiting room. The rich man calls out to Abraham pleading that Abraham will reduce his suffering in this place. Place. Abraham replies, I can help you. Your destiny is set. And besides there's a great chasm between these two waiting rooms. One that can't be crossed. The rich man in the wicked waiting room pleads will then send somebody to warn my living brothers. So they don't come to this place.

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To this Abraham replies. They have the prophets, let them listen to them. In other words, God's word can help them choose the right path to get to this righteous waiting room. The rich man pleads even more, no, but if somebody rises from the dead, they'll believe those words and not come to this place to this Abraham replies. Even if someone should rise from the dead, those who won't believe God's words won't believe. Anyway, there are several passages in the new Testament letters, one in Ephesians and one in the letters of Peter that we'll examine. As we go through those lines, they suggest Jesus between his death and resurrection perhaps made a visit to the wicked waiting room.

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But the various pieces of information we have is when Jesus died on the cross, his body died, but his spirit went to the good waiting room to join Abraham and other righteous saints from the old Testament. Jesus said as much on the cross to the thief who repented today, you'll be with me in paradise. That is your spirit. My spirit are going to the good waiting room to join. The righteous saints died. The ones who believed God and his word will learn in the new, the Testament letters in the book of revelation Haiti's and it's two waiting rooms or a temporary spot where all souls await a final resurrection.

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Jesus illustrated in his parables. That final resurrection and judgment is like the sorting of wheat from weeds of sheep, from goats of good fish. The key from the fish that are thrown back. When I talk about this in my class, I can tell my students have a question. What's it like in that waiting room? I remind them we're Pygmies who are trying to understand an iPhone, but I do suggest to them once released from our bodies on this earth, our spirits are eternal. When we die time ceases to be a factor. Have you ever had a night where you've fallen asleep, you didn't dream and you woke up and it seemed like just a moment.

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That's my best guess about time in these waiting rooms, Paul, in his letter to the Corinthians said, if you are a follower of Jesus, one whose blood has paid for your sins to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord. It's immediate, call it the presence of Jesus. Call it Abraham's arms. Those who've died in Christ they're with the Lord. And those who've died righteous before a guide, the gospel writers break their silence about this incredible weekend in Jerusalem at the crack of Dawn on the first day of the week, Sunday morning, we're going to take a look at what happened on that incredible morning, that first Easter morning in our next wordpicture.